


The Pendant

by destieldrabblesdaily



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, First Kiss, Friends to Lovers, M/M, Soulmate AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-28
Updated: 2016-07-28
Packaged: 2018-07-27 07:18:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,030
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7608904
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/destieldrabblesdaily/pseuds/destieldrabblesdaily
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Inspired by this prompt: AU where instead of a tattoo/name everyone’s born with a pendant/charm necklace that matches their soulmate’s. Dean walks into their bathroom thinking it’s empty, but there’s Cas taking off his shirt to take a shower and Dean sees his necklace (that matches Dean's, obviously) and freaks out (because Dean is totally 100% NOT gay at all). Bonus if Cas already knows.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Pendant

As much as Dean was trying to not let his sulky mood get to him, he was failing miserably. He sighed as he got into the elevator, pressing the ‘twelve’ button before heavily leaning against one of the walls. It wasn’t even the long day of exhausting lectures that had him this grumpy, not really…

As the elevator doors slid closed, his mind wandered to the text that his younger brother Sam had sent him that morning.

_‘Hey Dean! Guess what, I already found my soulmate! Her name is Jess and she’s perfect!’_

Of freaking course. The kid had turned sixteen less than a month ago, and he’d already found his match.

Dean wistfully thought back to his own sixteenth birthday; he’d been so excited when waking up that morning, for the first time admiring the silver necklace that had appeared around his neck while he’d been sleeping. The piece of jewelry that would lead him to the person he’d possibly spend the rest of his life with.

But now, four years later, Dean was beginning to lose all hope. Sure, not everyone was as lucky as Sammy, to find the one with the matching necklace within weeks after receiving it. There were plenty of stories out there about people who didn’t find their soulmate until they were in their thirties, or even forties. Regardless, sometimes Dean was tired of waiting, and today was one of those days. He was happy for his little brother, he honest to God was, yet he couldn’t help but feel slightly envious.

_Ding._

The elevator paused when it reached floor seven, and a little old lady offered Dean a friendly smile as she got on. Dean nodded at her, faking a smile of his own.

When the elevator started moving again, Dean absently reached for the necklace that was hidden behind two layers of clothing. To Dean, it was something private. He’d only pull it out whenever he found a girl with whom he thought he felt a possible connection, to see if it matched. It never had.

It was a personal matter, really. Some proudly wore their necklace for the world to see, like most of the still single girls that Dean encountered. Others, like Dean’s best friend Castiel, and their other friend Charlie, didn’t deem it necessary to wear their heart on their sleeve.

_Ding._

The ninth floor. The old lady shuffled to the exit, but not without wishing Dean a good day. _As if_. He smiled at her anyway.

Alone again, Dean pulled out the necklace, staring at the pendant almost resentfully; A flame made of emerald, cradled by wings made of sapphire. It was beautiful, it truly was, but it also made Dean bitter because every day, it reminded him of something still missing in his life.

_Ding._

That was Dean’s stop. He hastily hid the necklace, slipping out of the elevator and heading for apartment 9b.

~

“Cas?” He called as he turned the key and opened the door. “You home, buddy?”

No response. The living room was deserted, and so was their kitchen.

Dean dumped his keys and some books on the coffee table, sitting down on the couch, blankly staring at the flat screen television, even though it wasn’t on.

It was nice, their shared apartment. The Novaks were loaded, and they’d insisted that their son should live some place decent, not some smelly old dorm room. When Castiel had asked Dean to move in with him, because it was no fun living alone and there was more than enough room for two people to live anyway, Dean had refused at first. He certainly didn’t have the money to pay half of the rent. But Cas had assured him that it didn’t matter –he wasn’t paying for it either, his parents were- and Dean couldn’t turn down such an offer. For one because it _was_ way better than living in a shabby dorm room, but also because Dean genuinely liked being around Cas.

Cas was his favorite person in the world, and they’d been friends since they were chubby eight year olds. He’d been over the moon when he’d found out that Cas was going to the same college, and the idea of living with Cas… Hell yeah, it had made college all that more appealing.

Dean smiled, despite his shitty mood. Somehow, merely thinking about Cas always cheered him up.

Dragging himself off of the couch, Dean decided to take a long hot shower to clear his head. Showers were always a good choice. Dean already felt lighter as he collected some sweat pants and a comfortable shirt in his room, then aimed for the shower.

The second that Dean opened the door that led to the bathroom, his heart stopped. Wide blue eyes stared back at him in wonder.

Holy crap… _Abort, abort!_

He was greeted by a curtain of steam, the sweet smell of watermelon, and _Cas_. Half-naked Cas. Wet, half-naked Cas, wearing nothing but a thin towel around his waist, his dark hair a dripping mess. Inches of tanned skin were beckoning to Dean, just begging him to _touch_.

Before Dean’s dick even had a chance to betray him by displaying exactly how interested Dean was in what he was currently seeing, he was in for an even bigger shock. Because there it was, right there around Cas’ neck, the very object that Dean had been looking for ever since he’d turned sixteen. Green flame, blue wings. There was no mistaking that it was the same pendant.

Castiel smiled apologetically. “Sorry, Dean. I forgot to lock the door.”

Dean gulped, giving his best friend a shaky nod. “I ehm… I-it’s fine, Cas. Sorry for barging in.”

“It’s not your fault.” Cas assured him, eyes warm and understanding.

“Yeah… I’m gonna…” Dean pointed over his shoulder, backing away, almost tripping over his own two feet while making his escape.

Without looking back, he all but ran straight to his bedroom, firmly closing the door before flopping down on the bed, face first.

Dean’s heart was beating in his throat; this had to be a mistake… Dean Winchester was _not_ gay.

~

Like the ultimate coward, Dean hid in his room, staying there for hours. Unfortunately, this also gave him too much time to contemplate life. More specifically; too much time to investigate how he felt about Cas. So many things were making sense all of a sudden…

How Castiel was the only one in this world who really understood Dean. The only person in the world that hardly ever annoyed Dean, even now that they were sharing an apartment thus constantly in each other’s space. The one person that could make Dean smile whenever he was feeling down. They’d been inseparable from the day they’d met, and Dean could finally see why.

Dean stared at the ceiling, afraid to do anything other than breathe as all of his feelings came to the surface at once. In hindsight, he’d felt attracted to Castiel before, but he’d always been able to push it aside, thinking that his little gay crush would fade once he met his soulmate.

But now there were no excuses, not anymore. He was meant to be with Cas. Cas was meant to be with him. The scariest of all, was that Dean _liked_ that idea. Liked the idea of being even closer to Castiel. Liked the idea of never losing Cas to some other unknown soulmate. Liked the idea of Cas being _his Cas_.

But he’d have to speak up. He had to tell Cas. Besides, it would be a dick move if he _didn’t_ tell Castiel, considering that Cas would spend his entire life pointlessly looking for his better half. This was torture, and Dean was slowly losing his mind.

A timid knock on his door startled him.

“Dean? Are you alright? Can I come in?” Cas’ voice was gentle, concerned.

Dean bit his lip, lying still as a stone, scared to reply.

“I made pasta for dinner, in case you’re hungry.” Cas tried again. “It’s that pasta you enjoy, with the meat and the mushrooms…”

Of course it was. Dean’s eyes were stinging, because that was just _Cas_. Always kind and considerate towards Dean. The only soulmate Dean would ever need, if he were to be honest with himself for once.

“Come on in…” Dean called back quietly, crawling up into a sitting position, his defenses cracking.

The door opened, revealing an anxious-looking Cas.

“Is something wrong, do you want to talk about it?” Castiel asked immediately, picking up on Dean’s discomfort.

Dean smiled weakly at him, but couldn’t speak yet. He patted the edge of his bed, and Castiel got the hint, tentatively crossing the room and sitting down beside Dean.

A silence stretched on between them as Dean tried to figure out what to tell his best friend, or where to even start. Their shoulders brushed whenever one of them breathed in or out.

“You can tell me anything, surely you must know that.” Cas comforted Dean by casually patting his knee, guessing Dean’s thoughts like he often did.

Swallowing his fears, Deans swiftly pulled the hidden necklace out from under his shirt, holding up the pendant in front of Cas’ face.

“Oh, Dean…” Castiel sighed, looking both relieved and cautious, but not at all surprised. “I knew this day would come, I suspected why you were upset after you walked in on me in the bathroom.”

Dean gaped at his friend, momentarily paralyzed.

“You… You _knew?_ ”  

Cas nodded carefully, pulling out his own necklace, then collecting both pendants in his palm. They were identical, and Dean shivered involuntarily at the sight.

“Do you remember the night before your sixteenth birthday?” Castiel questioned. “The party at your house, and your mother allowing me to sleep over so that I wouldn’t have to walk home in the middle of the night?”

Dean nodded mutely; that had been one hell of a party, he definitely remembered.

“I couldn’t sleep that night.” Castiel confessed, now peeking up at Dean. “As you were sleeping, I saw it, the moment it happened… I recognized it right away, flames and wings, because that was the exact same necklace that _I_ was wearing.”

Dean stared at Castiel, speechless.

“I’m terribly sorry, Dean…” Castiel whispered, blue eyes reflecting the guilt that Dean himself felt. “It’s just that I _know_ you… I know what you prefer, and I didn’t want to force any of this on you, not until you were ready. Why else do you think I kept my necklace hidden around you?”

There were too many emotions, too many things still left unsaid, but everything was simply too overwhelming. Dean’s body started trembling uncontrollably, and soon, two warm arms pulled him in. Not resisting, Dean rested his chin on Cas’ shoulder, his own arms experimentally wrapping themselves around Castiel’s waist.

This felt good. More than good. Another one of those things that finally made sense; why even the smallest touch between the two of them would never fail to give Dean butterflies. His body, his mind, his soul… They were all craving Castiel’s presence.

“I shouldn’t have kept this from you, I’ve been a coward. I didn’t want to lose my best friend.” Cas murmured in his ear after a while. “But for what it’s worth… I love you, Dean. And I’m willing to offer whatever kind of love you’re comfortable receiving.”

Heart racing, Dean pulled back, so that he could look Cas in the eye. There was nothing but sincerity and devotion from Cas as their gazes locked. Dean’s eyes dropped to Cas’ lips, pink, and soft, and quite frankly irresistible. Now that Dean _allowed_ himself to feel it, he knew precisely what kind of love he wanted to receive, as Cas had so poetically put it. Whatever stuff they still needed to talk about, Dean decided that it could wait.

“Please _kiss me_ , Cas.”

~

One week later, and they were both wearing their necklaces for everyone to see, Dean beaming proudly whenever someone noticed that they were together.

He didn’t even mind when Charlie spotted them and squealed out a smug “Ha! _I knew it_.”

**Author's Note:**

> For more Destiel stories, go to destieldrabblesdaily.tumblr.com


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